William h



(N0 Model.)

W. H. BEEGHER. ENVELOP.

No. 592,602. Patented Oct. 26, 1-897.

aa aa I Inventor. M (15am) gaec/ier,

Attorney llnrrn States ONE-HALF TO ALONZO DE 0.

ROSSITER, OF SAME PLACE.

ENVELQP.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 592,602, dated October 26, 1897. Application filed anuary 7, 1897. $erial No. 618,290. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM H. BEECHER,

' a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Envelops, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, of which- Figure 1 is a plan view of an envelop with my invention applied thereto, the envelop being open at the mouth. Fig. 2 is a similar view to Fig. 1, but showing the envelop closed ready for mailing. Fig. dis a section on line a; in, Fig. 2. Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, but showing a modified form of my invention, eyelets being used instead of slots and one end only of the sheet-metal strip being tucked into its eyelet.

This invention relates to that class of envelops generally used for mailing samples, &c., such as the envelop described in Letters Patent No. 231,875, granted August 31, 1880, to James II. NVeaver, wherein there is secured transversely to a part or side of the envelop adjacent to theopen end thereof a thin pliable strip of sheet metal or the like whose ends project beyond the corners of the envelop and are adapted to be bent over inwardly upon the side of the latter, (after the part to which said strip is fastened is folded over so as to close the mouth of the envelop,) thereby securely holding the envelop thus closed and so preventing the escape of its contents. An objection to envelops of this class has been that the bent-over ends of the said strip were liable to catch upon some object in the course of handling or in passing through the mails, and thus the ends of the strip would be drawn out or away from the side of the envelop, and consequently the contents of the latter would sometimes escape.

The object of my invention is to provide means for obviating this difficulty without injuriously affecting the value of the envelop for the purposes for which envelops of its general class are used. This I do by the means and in the manner hereinafter described.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate an envelop of the beforementioned class in which my invention is embodied, A is the envelop closed, except at one end. To one side of the same, adjacent to the open end, is affixed, usually by pasting, a ton ge b, of paper or the like, whose free end extends beyond the said open end. In a fold or folds of this free end of the tongue is secured by pasting a thin pliable strip 0, preferably of sheet-iron, the free ends 0 of which, as seen, project some distance beyond the adjacent corners, respectively, of the envelop. I make at suitable points in the tongue 17 slots or slits d. The tongue is pasted to the side of the envelop in a manner that the part thereof adjacent to the said slits shall not adhere to the envelop, and the tongue is so applied to the latter that the slits will come into proper position, as shown, for the reception of the ends of the pliable strip, which are tucked therein, as hereinafter described. I usually paste the tongue to the envelop along, the margin of the tongue be low the slits-that is, the paste is applied along the margin between the lower end of the tongue and the parallel dotted line (seen in Figs. 1, 2, and 3) immediately above the end, as also shown in Fig. 4. Then the envelop thus constructed has been filled with the desired articles 'or material, the strip is folded over the open end of the envelop and its ends are bent over upon the envelop and are then tucked into the slits, respectively, as seen in Fig. 2. As the tucked-in ends of the strip lie between the side of the envelop and the tongue they are thus prevented from coming into contact with the contents of the envelop, which would be the case if the slits Were in the side of the envelop; and if such contents be a powdered or comminuted substance the same cannot escape, as would be liable to occur if the slits were in the body of the envelop-that is to say, in the latter case the powder or the like would be apt to escape .through the edges of the slit in the passage of the envelop through the mail, especially if the slit should become accidentally torn or enlarged in handling or transportation of the filled envelop.

In Fig. 4.- I show a slight modification of the invention which consists in providing the tongue with eyelets cl in lieu of the slits cut ,free ends of the pliable strip being in like manner tucked into the said eyelets. I usually, however, prefer the first-described construction. 4

There may be other modifications of the details of my invention without departing from the essential principle thereof.

In addition to the patent to Weaver, No. 231,87 5, above referred to, I am aware of the patent to G. W. Weber, No. 488,783, dated December-27, 1892, for an envelop of this class wherein the metal fastening-strip isinclosed in a flap of paper which is secured to the back of the envelop. The said flap is not, however, arranged to form a pocket for the bent end portions of the fastening-strips inserted through slits thereof, as in my envelop, but the said end portions are left eX- posed in the manner which it is the purpose of my invention to avoid.

Having thus described my invention, I

claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent The combination with an envelop of the class recited, of a tongue secured to one side thereof near its open end and projecting beyond the said end, said tongue having slits or the like near its opposite lateral edges, and a thin pliable strip of metal secured in said tongue and having its free ends projecting laterally thereof and designed to be bent to engage said slits, said tongue being secured to the envelop at its marginal portion only, whereby a free space or pocket is provided betweenit and the side of the envelop for the reception of the said bent ends, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

- WILLIAM H. BEECHER.

Witnesses:

WALTER O. PUSEY,

JOSHUA PUsEY. 

